Since we began Paleo Parents, we’ve been increasingly and routinely asked to review books and products by people in and adjacent to the paleo community. At this point, we get so many we are unable to actually do the reviews of the products in a timely manner! That’s why we recruited the Paleo Parents Review Team to fill in the gaps.
Today Kari reviews three new paleo books, Eat Drink Paleo, Make Ahead Paleo and Paleo Happy Hour.
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Irena Macri’s blog is awesome and so is her cookbook, Eat Drink Paleo! Her ‘Paleo Basics’ section provides you with a simple, well organized ‘what’s in’ and ‘what’s out’ in the Paleo lifestyle. I love her ‘About the Book’ and ‘About Me’ sections because they are lists (I’m obsessed with lists!), and provide insight into what kinds of recipes to follow. The back of the book has a ‘Recipe Index’ to help you find the recipes you are looking for.
There is a good mix of main dishes, veggies, and treats. Here are some of my favorite recipes from the book:
– Velvet Summer Quiche
– Lemongrass Pumpkin Soup
– Dukkah-Spiced Roasted Pumpkin (Dukkah is an Egyptian spice mix I had never heard of!)
– Chicken Larb Salad
– Raspberry Honey Chocolate Torte
– Raspberry Gin Fizz
There are many other recipes I cannot wait to try (like the Lychee Lemongrass Sangria!).
And I highly encourage you to check out her site as well, as you will find many other amazing recipes and gorgeous photos, like this Chai Banana Porridge!
note from Stacy:
Blown away by the gorgeous photography and styling of this book, we checked it out ourselves before sending this book to Kari for review. We made Irena’s Chai Banana Porridge and this photo pretty much sums up our family’s excitement about the deliciousness.
Our favorite part of the book is the unique ingredients and flavor combinations, stemming from her influence of Australian culture. Where else are you going to find Kangaroo Jerky?! Of course, Irena provides alternative ideas for these unique ingredients but if you’re looking for “classic American” this book isn’t it.
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Wow, the recipe photo index at the beginning of Make Ahead Paleo really caught my eye! I love being able to see all the recipe photos in one place. I had never seen this before and was excited that both this book and Paleo Happy Hour had photo indexes.
Tammy Credicott of The Healthy GF Life provides tons of great recipes that can help you cut down on cooking time during busy weekdays with just a little preparation. My favorite part of the book is the ‘Week in a Day’ menu and plan. You are provided with a grocery shopping list (which is perforated and you can tear it out of the book and take it with you to the grocery store/butcher/farmer’s market!) and instructions of everything you need to do on ‘prep day’, in addition to a list of five recipes using your prepped food items. With a few hours of prep on a weekend day, I can reduce my dinner cook time during the week to a mere 15-20 minutes. For me, this is huge! There is nothing I hate more than worrying about what I’m going to make for dinner and how long it’s going to take. If Tammy decided to make more ‘Week in a Day’ menu plans, I would be all over them!
One last thing I have to mention about this book, the recipe for Pizza Crust is worth buying the book alone. I am overly impressed with how the crusts turned out. I have tried a plethora of paleo crust recipes and have never had success but this one is PERFECT! And, being able to make many crusts and freeze them until the day you need them is wonderful. My husband said that if I hadn’t told him the crusts were paleo, he would have never known.
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This book makes me want to throw a party, right now! Kelly Milton of the Paleo Girl’s Kitchen has made a beautiful book that will get you in the entertaining mood! From ‘Alcohol Guides’ to ‘Party Rules’, everything you need for a delightful paleo party is here. Like Make Ahead Paleo, the beginning of the book has a recipe photo index.
I was excited to make many of the appetizers and sides, but most excited to make the drinks! I tried the following drink recipes:
– Mango Margaritas
– Perfect Pear Sangria (this was a HUGE hit at my monthly book club!)
– Pumpkin Pie Martinis (would be tasty in coffee sans alcohol)
– Creamy Avocado-ritas (my fav!)
I’ve had trouble finding a great grain-free crab cake but there is a delicious recipe in this book. I have to admit, I tried to make the Crab Cakes with Wasabi-Avocado Sauce but ate ALL of the crab cakes before I could even make the sauce! They are amazing!
Since I hate to plan, I thoroughly enjoyed this book’s 10 ‘Party Menus’. Each menu provides you with which appetizers, entrees, drinks, and desserts to make, complete with a preparation schedule. Love! There is also a super handy ‘Sauce Index’, which suggests alternate uses for the sauce and condiment recipes found in the book.
I truly enjoyed all three books! They are all available now so pick up one (or two or three)! Let us know your favorite things about these books.
